


Consequences of Filmmaking

by spacetimeinspector



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Feelings Realization, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Kickpuncher, M/M, idk i tried to be cute, this is my first ever trobed fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:47:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25686019
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacetimeinspector/pseuds/spacetimeinspector
Summary: “Are you sure Britta couldn’t do your part?”“Yeah I asked her, she wasn't available.”A sigh. “Let’s go film the sex scene.”Based on this end credits scene where they film a kiss scene instead and feelings ensue.
Relationships: Troy Barnes/Abed Nadir
Comments: 17
Kudos: 169





	Consequences of Filmmaking

**Author's Note:**

> okay so I wrote this because I’m not comfortable with writing kiss scenes so this is me trying to get better at it. I haven’t written anything in a long time and I usually only write angst so I wanted to try something short and sweet! I also have no idea how to name things so :)
> 
> constructive criticism is very welcome, I’m rusty and I want to learn things!!

Troy and Abed decided to have the brilliant idea of recreating their beloved first Kickpuncher movie, using the cheap costumes they could afford. The idea was all well and good until Britta couldn’t fill in for the part of the main love interest, though Troy honestly wasn’t sure why he expected Britta to join in on their shenanigans in the first place, but his brain refused to compute the alternative. 

“Are you sure Britta couldn’t do your part?”

“Yeah I asked her, she wasn't available.”

A sigh. “Let’s go film the sex scene.” 

Thankfully, even Abed, the man who would do anything for an homage for the sake of accuracy, agreed that maybe filming a sex scene with your best friend who’s dressed in mass amounts of potentially painful aluminum foil wasn’t the best course of action. When they got back to Abed’s dorm they sat on the couch, going over what they’d filmed to figure out what was next.

“Hmm, I guess instead of a sex scene we could do a kiss scene, do the classic ‘sitcom that can’t show sexual content’ thing where it’s implied they have sex but it actually cuts away. It wouldn’t fit the current genre, but we’re not doing a perfect recreation anyway.” 

Abed took a second to imagine the scene in his mind and how it would play out in their recreation, his finger pointed up in his signature Abed way, then when satisfied he went back to going through their scenes on his laptop. Troy considered Abed’s suggestion, it really did make a lot of sense for their movie recreation, but Troy had never kissed another boy before and the thought of it made his palms sweaty and his hands shake. 

Despite his building nervousness, Troy found himself agreeing as he wiped his palms on his pants, “Yeah, I’m down for that. It makes sense.”

So they set up their camera and sat on Abed’s couch, facing each other while one of each of their legs hung off the edge, their knees up on the couch touching. 

Abed put his wig back on and Troy put his eye mask back on, then there was no reason to wait, they were as ready as they could be. 

“Okay, action.” Abed began and then changed his demeanor and put on a high pitched voice, encompassing the character of Kickpuncher Love Interest #1 as best as he could.

“Oh, Kickpuncher, how can I repay you?”

“Easy, like this.” 

Troy’s palms started to sweat again as he looked into Abed’s eyes. They both began to lean in and Troy absentmindedly noted that Abed seemed way more prepared for what was about to happen than he was. Their eyes closed and their lips met, noses brushing against each other awkwardly. They both knew that movie kisses were supposed to last at least 5 on screen seconds - Troy wouldn’t even think of pulling away anyway. They tilted their heads slightly and Troy’s whole body started to feel warm - which wasn’t helping the palms situation, as they were slowly sliding off of his knees. He felt a sudden urge to get closer to Abed, so he leaned into him a little more, then suddenly, Abed had pulled away and gotten up to stop the recording before Troy had even opened his eyes. 

Troy silently thanked god for the fact that he didn’t have any more lines after the kiss, he wasn’t sure if he could say any words in that moment, except for maybe “oh my god.” Plus, it would be embarrassing to mess up the take in front of Abed for no apparent good reason. 

When he did open his eyes again, he looked at Abed, who was messing with the camera with furrowed brows. He didn’t look as warm and flushed as Troy felt and for some reason that knowledge gave Troy a pang in his chest. 

“Cool. Cool, cool, cool. That was a good take.” 

Troy didn’t know why he felt so nervous, he’d kissed plenty of girls before like it was nothing, because it often meant nothing to him. He guessed it could’ve been because this was his first kiss with a boy - but it was just for a video, and it was just with a friend, if anything this kiss should’ve meant the least to him given the circumstances. A thought crept into the back of Troy’s mind, that maybe it was because he didn’t just kiss anyone, he kissed Abed. He started to wonder what would’ve happened if Abed didn’t pull away, if he allowed Troy to lean into the kiss, to maybe wrap his arms around his waist and push him into the couch- 

Without thinking, he blurted out “Should we do another take?” and after realizing what he was suggesting he winced and cursed himself for his lack of a verbal filter. 

To his surprise, Abed coolly replied “That’s a good idea, you never know what could happen to the perfect take in production.”

Troy knew that there was no production in their little make believe to even mess things up in, but he nodded understandingly, anyway. If Abed thought that it was a good excuse then he would too. 

Abed sat back at his spot on the couch and Troy once again wiped his palms dry for good measure. Abed said action again and then delivered his lines with ease. 

Troy delivered his “Easy, like this.” a little too strained but he was too busy thinking about kissing Abed again that he just hoped it wasn’t too noticeable. This time, instead of them both leaning in slowly, Troy decided to take as much of a risk as he was willing to take in that moment and rested his hand on Abed’s cheek, slightly cupping his jaw. Abed’s eyebrows twitched upwards in surprise and then they were immediately kissing again. Troy celebrated his bravery in his mind as he relished in the sensation of Abed’s lips on his, but his nerves quickly started to take over, resulting in him moving his hand upwards awkwardly, accidentally knocking Abed’s wig halfway off of his head. 

They both pulled away and Troy quickly put his hand back in his lap, embarrassed, as Abed fixed his wig. “Shit, uh sorry- buddy.” Troy winced again at the fact that he just called someone buddy immediately after kissing them, “I ruined the take.”

Abed hummed and got up to stop the recording again, “It’s okay, second takes are just for safety, they won’t necessarily be used. That’s a wrap, then.”

Troy’s feeling of elation slightly subdued, a small part of him hoped they would do a third take because of his screw up, but he wasn’t willing to push it. Now, though, for the rest of his life, he had to live with the knowledge that after him and Abed kissed all he wanted to do was kiss him again and again and never stop. 

———

After taking off their costumes they spent the rest of the night watching movies in their pyjamas, deciding they’ve done enough filming for the day and now it was time for them to just chill out. But Troy couldn’t get relaxed, he kept catching himself gazing at Abed and his mind wouldn’t stop replaying them kissing every couple of minutes and his heart just wouldn't stop racing. 

He wondered what changed - why would something as small as a scripted kiss make him such a mess? He couldn’t think of a single girl that’s made him feel this way, and he had plenty of girlfriends in high school, plus he’s pretty sure he liked them all. But he doesn’t _like_ Abed, does he? He started thinking of all the possibly romantic things he’s done with Abed - holding his hand, calling him his other half, spending every second on campus with him and then staying over during the night because that alone still wasn’t enough… But those things can still be platonic, right? 

Troy’s mind drifted to that one biology project where they had to sing to that dumb, unpopular rat. Singing what was objectively quite a romantic song, and seeing Abed so appreciative of him… It made him feel so warm and fluttery, for lack of better descriptors. He thought he was feeling nervous because he had to interact with a rat, but suddenly he realized that the feeling lasted until after the rat was back in his cage and they were a safe distance away. After that night, Abed started to trust him a lot more and they got impossibly closer. 

Not liking where his train of thought was heading, Troy snapped himself out of his daze and looked at the TV to see that the movie was almost over. He checked his phone, looking for the time to see that it was almost 10pm. 

“Hey, it’s getting late. Should we get ready for bed, or…” He wasn’t sure how to end that sentence, but he liked to keep his suggestions open-ended.

“Sure.” Abed gave Troy a warm smile. “Do you want to watch some videos on my laptop?” 

He returned it, “Of course.”

Troy laid down on the bottom bunk and got comfortable, Abed followed him and they both curled up into the bed with Abed’s laptop resting on their abdomens. Usually, Abed slept on the top bunk and Troy slept on the bottom. Abed would say that it’s difficult for him to sleep with anyone next to him, it made him uncomfortable and made him unable to to think of anything else but the fact that he needed to sleep, thus making it harder to actually get any sleep. Troy understood it - well, he didn’t really, he loved being able to sleep with someone and having their warmth there with him, it comforted him - but he at least understood that there were things that Abed didn't like and he respected that. 

Some nights, though, Abed would suggest that they watch videos curled up on the bottom bunk, he knew that Troy liked to cuddle up to people and that it relaxed him. There were even some times where they fell asleep like that, with them drifting off and Abed putting his laptop on the floor before they both became unconscious for the night. Troy supposed that when they were already half asleep, Abed’s mind didn’t have to race about whether he could fall asleep or not, because he had the comfort of almost being there, so he’d be relaxed enough to sleep next to Troy without the stress. Either that, or he sacrificed his own comfort for Troy’s some nights as a favour. 

Troy wondered if Abed had suggested watching videos that night because he noticed how distant he had been after the kiss, but couldn’t recognize why. While dwelling on that notion, he found his lids getting heavier.

———

Troy woke up with his nose buried in Abed’s neck, he took a long breath before moving so that his head was on their shared pillow, his hand half on Abed’s shoulder, half on his neck. He looked at his best friend’s face next to him, he was breathing shallowly and still fast asleep. He looked so peaceful in the light peaking through the curtains, so calm and innocent and… beautiful. Troy’s mind immediately went back to what he was thinking the night before, maybe that warm feeling after their duet never left because it had nothing to do with that project, it just had everything to do with Abed. Abed made him feel nervous and fluttery and like he could do anything. He made him feel at home, and he’d only just realized what that meant. 

Seeing Abed, his Abed, so content gave him a pang of longing. He moved his hand from where it still rested, trailing it up Abed’s neck and resting on his cheekbone, barely grazing his thumb against his skin, soaking in the intimate moment while he could. He just couldn’t lie to himself any longer, he was completely infatuated with his best friend. 

Suddenly Abed shifted and stifled a yawn, slowly waking up. Not wanting to get caught in the act, Troy quickly removed his hand from Abed’s face and went to move it away, but between the wall and the mass of Abed he was sandwiched between, he didn’t have many options. He settled for resting his hand on Abed’s chest as he fluttered his eyes open. 

“Good morning.”

“Morning”

Abed took another deep breath before getting up and stretching, his absence from the bed made Troy feel that little bit colder. 

They both went to the communal dorm bathrooms and showers to do their morning routines before returning to Abed’s room to laze around and watch more movies. Troy sat on the couch as Abed scaled his bookshelves, looking for a good lineup that they could watch. 

Abed’s voice filled the silence, “How long are you staying?”

“Oh? Uh… I dunno. I’m cool to leave whenever.”

“Cool. I’m just figuring out how many movies I should pick.”

Troy nodded in response even though he knew Abed couldn’t see him. He didn’t know how he’d handle a whole day of being with Abed alone, he could barely get his mind to shut up all morning and he knew it’d eat away at him, but he didn’t know how to stop it. He knew he’d have to come to terms with his feelings eventually, or possibly bury them inside forever and never think about them again. 

Troy wasn’t good at keeping his feelings inside. Everyone knew this. An idea creeped into the back of his mind that he knew would topple everything, but he so desperately wanted to ask that maybe it could be worth it. 

“Abed? Can you come here? I want to ask you something.”

“Sure.” Abed placed the handful of movies he’d picked out next to the TV and sat next to Troy on the couch. “What’s up?”

“Okay, well… I want to ask you something but it’s maybe sorta weird…”

“I’m good with weird. You know that.”

“Yeah, but, I don’t want you to think I’m weird because of it- like, in a bad way.”

Abed looked like he had a million questions at the ready but instead of asking any, he said “Okay,” 

“Can I kiss you again?”

Abed’s brow furrowed and he cocked his head, clearly being taken off guard as Troy nervously watched his every movement to try and decipher if he’d taken the request negatively or positively. 

“Oh, I get it-” Abed started.

“What? Get what?”

“So, you kiss a guy and then suddenly you get confused, - wondering if you’re gay or just have hormones - so to stifle that confusion you kiss him again to test the waters. A classic trope for coming of age stories. You’ll end up straight and I’ll end up probably in the background scenes from then on out while you find your actual, heterosexual partner.” 

Troy wasn’t sure what he expected, but he hated the thought of Abed thinking he was using him as a gay-tester or something, and that he thought he’d be in the background of any of Troy’s life ever. 

“No! What? I mean, yes, maybe I’m confused but you’re not a background character to me and you never will be. I just… I don’t know.” and he didn’t know, because how could he explain to Abed that he wanted to be with him without risking everything? 

“I don’t want to be your testing dummy.”

“You’re not! Please, trust me. You’re not some prop that I’m gonna just throw away, we’re best friends and I don’t want to lose you. I just needed to ask, you can say no, I don’t mind…”

Abed mulled it over in his head for a minute, weighing the pros and cons, before smiling softly at Troy and nodding, “Okay… I’m fine with it then.”

Troy squeaked out a “Really?!” and positioned himself in the same way they had the night before, Abed following along.

He breathed an “Okay…” and placed one of his hands on Abed’s cheek just as he had the last time. He was nervously looking between Abed’s eyes and his lips, convinced that he’d miss because, well, because he’s him. He tentatively pressed his lips against Abed’s and as they moved together he snaked an arm behind Abed’s neck. The kiss was careful and slow, but there was a wanting behind it that Troy didn’t realize he had in him. Abed placed a hand on Troy’s waist and then moved it towards his back, pulling him closer. 

They sat kissing like that until Troy knew he’d have to catch a breath and pull away. He stared into Abed’s eyes, not knowing what to say or how to continue. He wanted to kiss longer, deeper, more frantically but he didn’t want to potentially step over any boundaries. 

Abed broke the silence, “So, what’s the verdict?”

“I wish I could kiss you forever.” The words slipped out of his mouth before he even knew what Abed was asking him.

But Abed didn’t seem to mind, he chuckled and smiled a big, genuine smile and said, “Go on, then. Kiss me again.”

Those words were music to Troy’s ears. He moved so both arms were around Abed’s neck and connected their lips again, then both of Abed’s arms were immediately around his waist. This kiss was more passionate this time, more openly desperate as he knew that Abed had wanted it, too. He grabbed a handful of Abed’s hair and opened his mouth slightly to deepen the kiss, tongues finding each other with ease. Troy sighed at the sensation and hazily registered that he’d never felt this good kissing any of his girlfriends. They pulled each other in until they were as close as possible, their chests were pressed against each other but their legs prevented any more closeness. Abed’s hands began to trace circles on his back from under his shirt and at that moment he realized his lungs were quite possibly going to give out. 

Troy pulled away to catch his breath and rested his forehead against Abed’s. After a second of heaving breaths, he lifted his head to get a good look at Abed, who was staring right back at him, eyes dark and lips red. The sight of him had Troy smiling as wide as humanly possible. 

Troy pulled in for a hug, squeezing Abed tight, before pulling back again, “Dude I’m like- I’m so gay.”

Abed returned Troy’s smile at that, “Me too. I’m glad we’re not in a sitcom trope right now.”

Troy giggled at that, squeezing his arms tighter around Abed, “Sitcoms are always bad at writing gay people, we’re gonna invent our own story.”

Abed hummed and planted a sweet kiss on Troy’s lips, and Troy was so glad he’d suggested they do their own Kickpuncher remake, because it was the perfect get together story to match them completely. 

**Author's Note:**

> can you tell I headcanon troy as gay or did I need to be more obvious? 
> 
> did the kisses make you cringe or did I do well? vote now


End file.
